


Jinzou + Ningen

by BlueBaku



Category: Kikaider, Tetsuwan Atom | Astro Boy
Genre: Crossover, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-22
Updated: 2018-05-12
Packaged: 2019-03-22 15:46:03
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,231
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13767339
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlueBaku/pseuds/BlueBaku
Summary: Astro Boy discovers a strange, old robot long out of commission, and asks Professor Ochanomizu to fix him up once more. Now awake after years of unconsciousness, Jiro is forced to learn the reality of the new world he lives in.





	1. Who is this robot?

"Ah, boy, isn't it good to get some fresh air!" Ochanomizu took a deep breath of the mountain air, enjoying it, before turning back around to Astro Boy.

Astro smiled awkwardly. "I don't breathe, professor. I'm a robot."

"O-oh, right, I'm sorry. Thank you for coming all this way with me, Astro. Being head of the Ministry of Science and all, you know I don't get to leave the city very frequently."

"No problem, Professor! It's nice to be away from all that sound interference after all. Besides, you're like another father to me!"

"Aw, Astro..." Ochanomizu blushed at the endearing child's words. "That's so sweet of you."

Astro nodded, adjusting his hearing to pick up birdsong and chittering forest animals. "The forests are pretty dense and lonely here, huh? I can't hear any other robots or humans."

Ochanomizu led Astro down the path, deeper in. "Well, Astro, that's because this used to be a nature preserve. It's stayed mostly untouched by human hands until just a few years ago when it became a park. Luckily, most people still don't know about it. So be careful not to touch anything! It may only be a park now, but we should still preserve nature, Astro." 

"Of course, Professor..." Astro paused when he picked something up. "Wait... I hear something."

"Hm?"" Ochanomizu turned back around, kneeling down in the dirt. "What is it, Astro? A strange kind of bird?"

He shook his head. "There's a robot here!"

Ochanomizu jumped straight up. "A r-r-robot?! That's impossible!"

Astro turned toward the sound, walking carefully between trees and over flowers, doing his best not to touch anything just as the Professor had instructed. "I don't lie, Professor. My Omega Factor is picking it up very faintly, but very close... Ah!" 

The pudgy professor stumbled into an opening in the trees. There, sat upon a bench, was indeed some form of humanoid robot in outdated clothing. His face was convincingly human, but slightly transparent on one side, showing all the inner workings. His eyes were closed, as if he had fallen asleep and petrified there, and in his arms was an old guitar being reclaimed by nature. "My god, Astro, you're right! What on earth is this doing here? It looks as if it's been sitting for decades!"

"It probably has, it's all stiff and rusted..." Astro carefully walked over for a better look. Unlike him, this robot's face had no artificial skin. Rather, it was sculpted, like a mask. Tiny cracks were spread over the surface of it, like a porcelain piece that cooled too fast. He looked at the hands, and carefully took the glove off one. The joints were clearly quite simple. Astro tried to move one, but the metals had rusted too much. "I don't think we should leave him here, professor. He's still kind of awake. I can hear him." 

"Hmmm..." Ochanomizu walked over, inspecting it. "This doesn't look like most Japanese robots. He may be here illegally. We have to learn more. Astro, please carry him out!"

"Yes, sir!" Astro did his best to pick up and hold the stiff, adult sized robot. The guitar fell out of his unmoving grip, hitting the ground and falling apart. "Oh, whoops! Sorry, mister, it looks like you'll have to do without a guitar for now... I'll see about buying you one later."

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The robot was laid down on a work table, fabric from its clothes cut away from the joints to oil them well enough to lay it flat. Ochanomizu opened up its chest, looking inside. "These parts are quite old... I'm not even sure many of it is still made this way. This looks like nothing the Ministry of Science created, either."

Astro took a seat at one end of the table, looking over this strange android. "Who do you think made him, Professor?"

"Well, I'm not sure, Astro... early robot technology was a strange era, I hear..."

"Hm..." Astro took a closer look into the freshly opened chest cavity, turning on the lights of his eyes to better illuminate it. "... Komyoji."

"Pardon?"

He pointed to a small, indented stamp inside. "It says Komyoji. That must be who made him."

"Komyoji... Komyoji..." Ochanomizu pulled up old files on his computer. "Nobuhiko Komyoji...? That sounds like our man. He was a famous scientist, although not well known. Some say he was only second to Professor Kisaragi, even... it seems he disappeared a while before fleeing to America for unknown reasons..." He frowned. "Astro, this is really quite frightening. It seems all manner of scientists were disappearing around this time. This robot you found may be connected to something dark." 

"We should talk to him and ask," Astro insisted. "He's been asleep, waiting for help for so long!" He looked deep into the wires, finding a few spots of damage. "Don't worry, mister. We won't leave you like this."


	2. I've woken up somewhere strange...

Jiro's memory and senses were hazy. For some reason, he felt as if for a long time, sounds and sights had been happening around him that he had registered but never remembered. He wasn't sure what had been happening, until, suddenly, he felt to be cut off entirely, and soon brought back. His vision was clear, and he could tell he was laying down on something. Above him were an older gentleman, and what looked to be a young schoolboy. The child was smiling.

"Hey, mister, can you hear me?"

"Yes, I can..." Jiro's own voice surprised him. It was rough, and somewhat distorted. He tried to move his limbs, but found they refused to budge. Panic was starting to set in. The last he had been in a position like this, Hakaider had restrained him to install the "Yes, Sir" circuit that allowed Jiro to kill his brothers. "Who are you...?"

The boy's chubby face spread into an even wider grin. "Thank goodness, it looks like you're okay! My name is Astro. It's nice to meet you!"

"Calm down, Astro," the gentleman said, putting his hand on the little boy's shoulder. "our guest here is probably frightened. Now, may I know your name?"

Jiro hesitated. He still wasn't sure he could trust these people. "They call me Kikaider."

"Well, Kikaider, my name is Ochanomizu. I'm the head of the Japanese Ministry of Science. We found you in a wooded area, in bad shape. You'll need far more extensive repairs, but because your technology is older, we wanted to consult you first."

Older? Jiro could hardly believe that. It's true that he hadn't been operating for a while, but it couldn't have been more than, say, a month. He was certain. It was impossible. He must've gotten injured in some battle. Nonetheless, as it stood, he was completely vulnerable before these people. What choice did he have but to cooperate? "Oh... there's a circuit, hidden somewhere on me that should be different, overheated to breaking. Don't... don't repair that one."

Astro and Ochanomizu looked at each other, collectively shrugging and nodding. Ochanomizu moved out of Jiro's field of vision. Jiro tried to tilt his head, but his neck was completely immobilized. "Alright. Well, hold on Kikaider. I'm shutting you down a little for some of the most vital repairs. I'll wake you back up once I'm done to talk again, okay?"

"Okay..." Jiro anxiously replied. His vision darkened once more in a forced shutdown, and he was in slumber once more.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Kikaider?"

Jiro's vision came into focus once more. "Ochanomizu?"

"Can you sit up for me?"

Jiro slowly pushed himself up, the metal of his body creaking and groaning in protest as he did. Finally able to look around, he could see the room was filled with monitors, showing various diagrams of his own body and what damage and repairs it had received. In a box nearby, he could see degraded wires and broken sensors. Had those all come from him...? Ochanomizu was by the monitors, watching with a smile. Beside him was the child from before, Astro.

"Good morning!" Astro waved to him. "Are you feeling better, Kikaider?"

Jiro nodded. "Can I stand?"

"Yes, you should be able to, but take it slow," Ochanomizu warned.

Astro ran over, offering Jiro his hand. "Let me help you!" 

Jiro took his hand, and paused in surprise. Astro's hand was neither soft nor warm, like humans he knew. Was it possible he was an android too? He was just a child, though. Jiro tried to put the thought aside, and, carefully, stood up. His legs were stiff, and resisted holding him up. He could only manage a few steps before he collapsed to his knees. Astro helped him back up, and to the worktable. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine... thank you for helping me, Astro." 

Astro nodded firmly. "Of course! Us robots have to watch out for each other, after all."

"Us robots..." So the child was an android, after all. He looked down at Astro, who tilted his head at Jiro's stare. After a moment, Jiro picked Astro up. He held him like a child, like he had held Masaru in the past, gently hugging him.

"Huh? Do you... want to be friends?" Astro asked, hugging back.

"Yeah..." Jiro nodded a little, and, shaking somewhat, started to cry. That old function of his hardly ever saw use, but at this moment, Jiro couldn't help but cry. He wasn't alone anymore. He had a friend like him.


	3. I've never heard anything like that...

"Let me see, let me see!"

"Shhh," Astro held a finger to Uran's mouth. "Be quiet, Uran, he isn't all fixed up yet, and he's pretty emotional."

Uran whined and stomped. "No fair, you always get to do things without me! I want to be part of things, too!"

Astro put his hands on her shoulders. "Calm down, you will! Here, I'm going to let you give him something... one sec!" He ran past her so fast, she spun around, and came back so fast, she spun the other way, and fell down dizzy. "Oops! Sorry!" With his spare hand, he helped her up, and with the other he gave her the present: an acoustic guitar. Being much weaker than her brother, she struggled to hold it for a moment.

"What's this?" She idly plucked at the strings.

"When we found him in the woods, he had an old rotting guitar with him. I wanted to get him a new one."

Uran beamed, and rushed into the room ahead of Astro. "Mr. Kikaider!"

Jiro opened his eyes, slowly sitting himself up. A strange little girl in a pink dress ran into the room, toting a guitar practically as big as she was. The sight warmed his heart. "Hello there. Who are you?"

She hurried over, big shining eyes peering over top of the guitar. "My name is Uran! Uhm, my brother asked me to give this to you!"

"Brother... Astro?" For a moment, Jiro felt his heart ache. Ichiro... Rei... He could never see them again. His gaze wandered to his hands, palms up in his lap. The hands that killed his brothers. Uran, without noticing he was distracted, thrust the guitar into those hands, bringing Jiro back to the present day.

"Are you a musical robot? Is that why you were made?" Uran scrambled onto the workbench next to Jiro, sitting beside him and swinging her legs. Astro, who had been watching from the door, finally stepped in, walking over to listen. 

"Not... quite." Carefully, he plucked at the strings. "I guess I was made for a lot of reasons, not that they matter too much now. But, Professor Komyoji loved music, so he made all his robots at least a little musical." His fingers danced across the strings as he remembered the old songs he used to play. It was soothing.

"Are there others like you, then?" Uran asked.

Jiro stopped short. Looking back, he wished suddenly that he never asked Ichiro to shut up when he sang.

Astro, worried, quickly tried to distract him. "Kikaider, can you play us a song? I want to hear if the guitar is any good!"

"Oh, right, of course..." Of course. The kid wanted to make sure he had given a good gift after all. He readjusted the instrument in his lap, striking a chord and letting it resonate. It was lovely. Gradually, he began to remember the old song he had made up years ago, that familiar tune. This was just like that one time... after leaving Mitsuko, when he was at the park, and the children gathered to hear him play. This was just like that one time. He closed his eyes, losing himself in the nostalgia. Did these children enjoy it too, even if they were robots...? Opening his eyes once more, he was shocked to see them both crying. "Are you two alright?"

Uran sniffled, rubbing her eyes. "I feel kinda funny. For some reason, I miss Pluto."

Astro blinked. "What... what was that song, Kikaider?"

Looking around, he couldn't help but feel guilty, that he had done something wrong. "I'm sorry, it's just a song I made up, I guess you didn't like it..."

Astro shook his head. "No, it was... I think it's a word humans use more, really, uhm... it was really touching, Kikaider."

Stunned, he set the guitar aside. A word humans use...? He had spent so much time wanting desperately to be human, and now were two children in front of him, both as human as could be, crying as he did, feeling things he thought only he could. There would be no bring back his brothers, and even though it broke his heart, he accepted that, However, he somehow couldn't help but feel as if these kids were some sort of lost family to him. Reaching out, he laid a hand on Astro's shoulder. "Thank you, Astro. That means more to me than you could ever imagine."


	4. You've never seen the world like this, mister

"Are you ready, Kikaider?"

Jiro anxiously pulled his trench coat closer around him. He felt fine at this point, completely operational, but had built up a fear in the meantime of breaking in front of a human, of them finding out he was a robot. He nodded to Astro nonetheless. "I'm ready."

"Okay then..." Astro adjusted his collar. He was dressed like a sweet little schoolboy. "Don't worry, I promise nobody's going to mess with you while I'm around!" He smiled, and opened the front door of the Ministry of Science where he had been hidden. "Just take it easy..."

Jiro squinted at the light of the sun. His eyes adjusted slowly, as the room he was in had been so dark, mostly illuminated by the screens projecting diagrams of his own body. When finally everything came into view, he found his mouth agape at the sight of the city. It was just like he had imagined the future to be: floating cars, impossibly huge and colorful buildings, trees along the roadside blending into the bright landscape... It was like stepping into a movie set. Slowly, carefully, he stepped out into the light. The warmth of the sun came down on his face. It never seemed so pleasant. Was this the power of the new sensors he had been given?

Astro patted his arm. "Hey, are you alright, mister? It isn't overwhelming, is it?"

"No, it's fine..." Jiro patted his head, "... just lead the way."

Taking Jiro's hand, Astro pulled him along. "I'll show you my school. You might end up going to school there, too! If I'm lucky, you'll even be in my class. I think that'd be... Kikaider?" He stopped when he realized his friend was distracted, staring at a construction site. "Oh, they're building a new office building here. There's a lot of businesses in town, because it's a tech hub. At least, that's what Mustachio says."

Jiro tugged at Astro's hand to bring him closer, and pointed. "Is that...?"

"Hm?" He craned his neck to look at what he was pointing to. A hefty robot worker was sitting on a bench, apparently on break, relaxing as he carefully oiled his stiff joints. "Oh, he must work here."

"He's a robot. That's a robot."

"Yes, he- wait! Where are you going!" Astro followed Jiro as he jogged over to sit beside the strange robot.

The robot turned to look at him. His neck creaked a bit when he did. "Hm? Hello there."

Jiro suddenly felt nervous. "H-hi... I'm Jiro. You're a robot?"

He chuckled in response. "Yes, I am. Are you from the country? Don't see robots like me much?"

Shaking his head, Jiro smiled. "Well... something like that. I've never seen a robot like you. Are there others?"

"Oh, yes. Hundreds. In such an up and coming, industrial town, we outnumber humans, even. Live here, go to school here, everything."

Jiro's eyes sparkled. "Just like humans."

"Haha, yeah. Just like humans." Struck by how childlike Jiro seemed in that moment, the robot ruffled his hair, when a realization struck him. "Hey... you're..." he leaned forward a little closer to examine his face, starting to see the cracks, a glimpse of exposed mechanical joints, when a shouting human ran over.

"Stop! Stop right there!" He pointed a remote control at the worker robot, pressing a button that made him stiffen, and his eyes close. Jiro watched in horror. The human went up to him, moving the hand off his head and pulling Jiro out from under. "I'm so sorry sir, that robot has never given any trouble before, he hasn't hurt you at all, has he? You're fine?"

Upset, Jiro pushed the man off of him. "I'm fine, he didn't hurt me at all," he grumbled somewhat angrily. "What is that?"

"This?" The man held up the remote. "I can do a remote forced shutdown on any robot here. After all, they're all very strong, and I don't want them to hurt anyone."

Jiro narrowed his eyes. He'd met plenty of people who disliked machines, but all at least had reasons, no matter how poor. Astro noticed, and maneuvered between them. "I was here and saw it, I promise that robot did nothing wrong! He can be reactivated!"

"Oh, Astro Boy! I didn't... see you. Well, yes, I promise I'll restart him."

"May I see... that remote?" Jiro asked, trying to relax again. The man complied, hardly able to complain given Astro's status as a hero. Jiro removed one glove, showing off his clearly robotic hand. The man's breath caught in his throat. With a crunch, Jiro easily crushed the remote. "I'm... well, I'm sorry, but that's too much power to have over good people who've done nothing wrong."

As the man stared, dumbfounded, pale and sweating, Astro began to pull Jiro away, and back towards the Ministry of Science. "Uhm, Mr. Kikaider, don't break other people's stuff! Let me handle things, I work with the police after all."

Jiro sighed, and pressed his forehead into his palm, letting himself be led. "I'm sorry. I guess, where I come from, the law never applied to robots..."

"It does now, just like with humans." 

He could hardly believe it, and yet, he did. Humans and robots seemed equal... but maybe, they weren't. Not in all the ways they could be, anyway. His thoughts were swimming, until Astro closed the ministry doors behind them, and cut him off from the sunlight once more.


End file.
